One Good Thing And One Bad Thing About Secret Six #28

GOOD THING: As I predicted three issues ago, Giganta wound up avenging the death of her boyfriend The Atom a.k.a. Ryan Choi, who was killed by Deathstroke, who was hired by Dwarfstar.





Choi's death was a phenomenally stupid one and a text-book example of "fridging", serving no purpose other than to make Deathstroke's new team of evil Titans look bad ass. Not only did it fail to do that but it did nothing only to give more ammunition to those fans who accuse DC Editorial of "white-washing" their character line-up by eliminating minority successors to retired/inactive/dead white superheroes.

Whatever your feelings about these accusations, it cannot be denied that the relationship between a shrinking hero and an enlarging villain was a unique concept that was played with beautifully. That drama is forever lost to us now. So it seems only fitting that Giganta should be the one to see Choi avenged and that it should happen under the pen of the writer who did so much to make Ryan a unique and beloved character.


BAD THING: There are a lot of great moments in this book. But in the end, that is all they are. Moments. There's very little plot holding things together and in the end it seems like there was little reason for this story-line other than to put everyone in their skivies (I think all Scandal did to dress for Skartaris was take her pants off) or sexy Conan gear and fight with dinosaurs with an issue or two.

What's wrong with that? Well, nothing really... except that the setting and the set-up here deserves so much more than we get and the whole thing feels rushed. Like what was meant to be a six issue-story was crammed into four issues worth of space or a cross-over with the Warlord comic was plotted out but aborted after that series was recently canceled.





The cast on loan from Warlord suffers the most, with what should be a really big deal (Machiste freeing the evil wizard Deimos to fight the super-villains invading his kingdom) being but one more annoyance for our protagonists to cope with and snark about on top of the dinosaur attacks, wild magic and rampaging barbarian hordes.

And that's just in the first HALF of the book. After that, there's still Amanda Waller to deal with and the revelation that she's only going to keep half the group of villains on retainer. Plus the subplot regarding Black Alice and her sick father. And Deadshot's vendetta against Lady Vic. And Bane's relationship with Scandal and her father issues. And Catman's grudge with... well, everything. And Deadshot's romance with Jeanette The Banshee. And Ragdoll maybe developing feelings for Black Alice. And... well, there's no resolution at all regarding Skartaris except "screw you all, we're going home."



The Final Verdict: A lot of random character moments and funny bits, which are far less than the sum of their parts. There's a lot of good here and a great ending (especially for fans of the Ryan Choi Atom) - don't get me wrong. But the whole thing feels rushed and incomplete somehow, like we were meant to get more issues of this story.

One Good Thing And One Bad Thing About Secret Six #27

BAD THING: At this point, fans of The Warlord series are bound to have some questions. Why is Travis Morgan's armor on display in the home of his old friend and fellow king Machiste? Isn't Tinder aka Joshua Morgan wearing his father's old armor and fulfilling his old role as Warlord of Shamballa anymore? Why isn't Shamballa doing anything to help Machiste repel the invaders being led by Bane? Is sending Shakira the extent of the help they are offering? If so, why is Shakira - who knows better than anyone about the evils of the wizard Deimos - encouraging Machiste to use an artifact to bring him back from the dead? If not, what is Shakira doing in Machiste's kingdom since she seemed to be hanging around Tinder and keeping an eye on him following Travis Morgan's death?





GOOD THING: All questions of continuity aside, it IS still a hoot to see most of the members of both Teams of Six winding up in a jungle/fantasy outfit... and to see Catman riding a giant white tiger in the Warlord armor.







The Final Verdict: An enjoyable read, though it raises a lot of questions for fans of The Warlord regarding a lot of things that don't seem to jibe with the characters or the ending of Mike Grell's recent series.

One Good Thing And One Bad Thing About Warlord #16

GOOD THING: What can I say except that this book has more wonderful Mike Grell artwork and a lot of poster-worthy pages?

BAD THING: This is the final issue of the series and it is plainly obvious that they rushed to get everything that Grell had planned into the issues left following the series' cancellation.

Even Grell - who is famous for packing as much action into every page as he can - seems to be pushing the limit for just how much can be accomplished in a single issue here. While this does help to keep things moving, it does leave us with anti-climactic moments such as the alien fleet threatening the Earth AND The Final Battle (and we really mean it this time) with the evil wizard Deimos both being resolved over the span of four pages.

Still, we do get an ending of sorts with Skartaris seemingly sealed off for all time from the outside world, the story of Travis Morgan being sent to the outside world as a memorial of the now lost land and the man who laid the groundwork for some kind of civilization being built there.



The Final Verdict: It feels like a rushed conclusion, because that's what it is. Still, the artwork is vintage Grell and it is nice to see the Warlord saga get a definite ending, however haphazard.

One Good Thing And One Bad Thing About Warlord #15

BAD THING: Most of the book is exposition - both of a group of random scientists explaining how apparently aliens are responsible for the creation of Skartaris and Jennifer Morgan explaining the rules of magic and the bond between siblings and... *yawns*

GOOD THING: When the action finally DOES get begin, we're treated to some wonderful Mike Grell writing AND artwork.

The Final Verdict: We're winding down to the end and it shows. It seems that Mike has been forced to tell a saga in a sentence and most of what he wanted to reveal about Skartaris in the new series is quickly being explained as we are rushed to a final issue. At least Mike's art is as great as ever.

One Good Thing And One Bad Thing About Warlord #14

GOOD THING: Well... the Mike Grell cover art is nice.

BAD THING: The rest of the artwork looks unfinished at times, with the same areas being over-inked or under-inked depending on which inker is working on which page.

The Final Verdict: This book is ending in two issues and it feels like they are rushing to a conclusion of sorts. The artwork certainly feels rushed. Also, I can't say I'm crazy about the idea that the secret of the Atlantean technology scattered about Skartaris is supposedly due to alien involvement. Still, we'll see where Grell is going with this...

One Good Thing And One Bad Thing About Warlord #13

GOOD THING: Any worries about this series stagnating in the wake of Travis Morgan's death are killed within the first few pages. A new disaster threatens the land and Tinder finds himself - somewhat reluctantly - assuming his father's role as protector.

BAD THING: The art is inconsistently inked. It is too heavily shadowed at times and too light, causing the art to look sketchy... sometimes on the same page!

The Final Verdict: A new Warlord. A new start. Same old action/adventure we know and love from Mike Grell. Would that he was still doing the art but I suppose you can't have everything.

One Good Thing And One Bad Thing About Warlord #12

BAD THING: Good as Grell's artwork is, it is over-inked at times.

GOOD THING: This is a fitting ending for the story of Travis Morgan. You could easily end the comic here and it would be good. Still, I am glad to see the series will continue, apparently centering upon the adventures of Joshua "Tinder" Morgan.

The Final Verdict: Great art and story, as Mike Grell brings the story of his most popular creation to a conclusion of sorts. This would be a good place to end the series and yet it is going on. I can't wait to see what Grell has planned next!

Fast Thoughts On The Comics Released The Week of 02/03/2010

CINDERELLA: FROM FABLETOWN WITH LOVE #4 - I love this mini-series SO much. It reminds me of why I loved Fables so much before Bill Willingham began phoning it in. And I especially loved this one - even though the shoe-making subplot has been brought to it's obvious and inevitable conclusion - because it let me see the Fables take on one of my favorite characters as a kid - Puss N'Boots.





It may be too late to catch the early issues at a reasonable price, but you should all definitely consider ordering the trade-paperback.



CONAN THE CIMMERIAN #18 - More flashbacks as we learn how Conan lost one command only to gain another, much more to his liking as a leader of fighters rather than as a leader of men.





One touch I did like here was how the cliche of Conan's boorishness and/or a princess's fickleness leading to violent conflict is avoided. Despite an undignified dismissal at the hands of his rival and Conan's angry response, Conan is still allowed to leave the kingdom unmolested and actual parts ways in relatively good circumstances.



DOCTOR WHO #8 - A stirring conclusion to last issue's cliff-hanger, with the Doctor and his new companions weathering an assault that leaves the TARDIS coming apart at the seams and The Doctor struggling to find a path back to the control room.

We do start to get a sense of The Doctor's new companions (Emily Winter and Matthew Finnegan) here, as our villain attempts to sow dissension in the ranks. Indeed, the villain offers a rather insidious explanation for why it is The Doctor seems to take on more female companions than male ones and why he only ever seems to take male companions on under duress. It's frightening but it does make a rather odd sense given most of the women The Doctor has adopted, so to speak. And it sets Matthew to questioning everything about just why he is traveling with The Doctor. Emily doesn't get quite as much development, being sort of a Rose Lite here, but at least she is presented as being spirited and competent, even if her main accomplishment here is persuading a group of aliens to take her where she needs to go.

Not a bad issue by any means but I can't help be feel sort of nonplussed at the ending. Not two issues into a story where The Doctor picks up some new companions and is getting ready to move on to new and better things... he's getting called by Martha, begging for help.

If this comic really is going to fill in some stories in the gap between Season Four and The Specials, I think it would be best if it did it free of most of the trappings of the regular series. If we are to enjoy the new companions, let us enjoy the new companions for a bit before dragging Martha back into the mix.



KNIGHTS OF THE DINNER TABLE #158 - We go back to basics with most of the comics this time around, getting several short, funny slice-of-life comics depicting the various games and events involving the gamers of Muncie, Indiana. They're all pretty funny but my favorite is Bob's understandable confusion to Weird Pete's return to a dark and illegal business that he swore off in college even as he now swears to keep it out of his turf and out of the hands of kids.

What? He means weighted dice. What did you think he was talking about?

The Gaming The Movies column continues to be a waste of paper and a sad replacement for the gamer movie reviews of Spoony from The Spoony Expriment. This month, they discuss the Underworld movies and how you can use them and other resources for your Vampire/Werewolf themed role-playing games. (sarcasm) I'm sure this is wonderful news for all of you numerous White Wolf players who had NO IDEA that these movies were here. (/sarcasm)

They even talk about other movies and book series you can use for your game. Because we really need a three-page column to tell us how you can steal ideas from Blade and Dresden Files for an RPG.


WARLORD #11 - A few more flashbacks this time around but we finally get some action toward the end and a little bit better idea of what Grell has been building us towards for the past few months as well as an explanation regarding just how the magic/science of big bad Demios has caused some of the series events to occur.

It's a must read for any fan of good fantasy.

Sword And Sorcery Sunday: Warlord #10

GOOD THING: A little bit of time is devoted to each of the books on-going subplots.

* Kate Archer reveals just how she has resurrected Travis Morgan's arch-enemy, the wizard Deimos.
* Tinder sets about trying to succeed where Morgan failed in establishing a nation based on justice and freedom, over Morgan's objections
* Ewan McBane begins making a documentary about Travis Morgan, interviewing his three closest comrades-in-arms.



BAD THING: With the exception of two pages in the middle and the first and last pages of the books, this entire issue is composed of two-page splashes. While the art is beautiful (and also virtually unscanable with my equipment) it only serves to make the book seem even shorter than it is. Not much really happens in terms of the plot with the only real advancement being that we learned that Deimos is amnesiac.



The Final Verdict: It's a gorgeous book, but nothing really happens in this issue. There's a lot of flashbacks to the old Warlord series and quite a bit about things Travis Morgan has done and what sort of man he is... but almost no new information has been introduced and - like Skartaris itself - it almost feels like time is standing still in regards to this book. Something had better happen and soon or I might have to start reconsider picking this up.

One Good Thing And One Bad Thing About Warlord #9

GOOD THING: Mike Grell writing and art, as per the last two issues. But unlike the last two issues, the story in this one is fairly straight forward. There's only one flashback and it is clearly identified as such.

BAD THING: The problem is that while the story is fairly straight forward (i.e. Morgan returns home from chasing the minions of Kate Archer) there's really not much plot. Nothing really happens apart from various couples hooking up and the revelation of what the villain is up to is only allowed three pages at the very end.

Also, because this is Mike Grell, there is a LOT of fan-service in the artwork that renders me unable to show a lot of the pages. But on the bright side, Mike delivers fan service for both sexes evenly.


The Final Verdict: Despite having more hook-up scenes than some fan-fiction this issue, this series is proving to be like a visit from an old friend you haven't seen in forever. I highly recommend you all enter the lost world of The Warlord.

One Good Thing And One Bad Thing About Warlord #8

GOOD THING: Like I said last month - It's Mike "My God" Grell doing the writing AND the art.

BAD THING: I had to go back and reread last month's issue and then reread this one to realize just how the story flowed. To make it clear, the first part of #8 happens... then we cut to the beginning of issue #7... and then come back to the end of #8 for the real ending. There's no real reason to do the story in this fashion, other than to do the artificial fake-out regarding the identity of the virginal maiden Morgan saves.

Give you a hint: she's the ancient Atlantean war goddess.

Not a bad story by any means but I think it could have benefited from a more straight-forward time progression. That being said, it's good to have the master back in the saddle.

Comic Reviews - 09/30/09 and 10/07/09

I still haven't gotten my comics for this last week yet and I probably won't be able to until next weekend. Still, I have two weeks worth to catch up on... so let's get to it, as I give you my thoughts on the issues of the past two weeks plus one page scan (or, in one case, one scan made up of parts of two pages that go better together) from each book.

So come along, if you are at all interested in Batman: The Widening Gyre #2, Blackest Night: Titans #2, , Green Lantern #46, Jack of Fables #38, Knights Of The Dinner Table #154, Warlord #7 and Wonder Woman #36



BATMAN: THE WIDENING GYRE #2 - Kevin Smith's writing seems to be hit and miss with most people; you either hate it or you love it. With me, it hits. And in reading this most recent issue, I've noticed something regarding one of the more common complaints about Smith's take on Batman; specifically, how Smith's Batman curses and uses common slang.

"I'm embarrassed I let him run me this far. Look at him, the big fat mess. Under any other circumstances, at this point, I'm watching Gordon's men load him into the meat wagon, with breaks that will never heal. You're so lucky you fat, bloated turd... So lucky you're holding that kid. He plays the hostage card, banking on me going after the (falling) girl instead of him. Dammit... I hate being predictable."

The interesting thing is that after this issue I think I can justify this by comparing it to Principal Skinner from The Simpsons and the old line "I know you can read my thoughts, Bart. Just a little reminder - if i find out you cut class, your ass is mine! Yes, you heard me. I THINK words I'd never SAY." Because if you look carefully throughout this book - and Smith's other Batman works - you'll note that Batman never actually says "Dammit." or "You bastard!" or the like... but he sure does THINK them loud.

This is not to say that this isn't jarring for those of us who aren't used to getting an internal dialogue in a Batman book. They haven't been in vogue for a while now. And Smith's other great flaw is that the story so far - and this issue in particular - go all OVER the place on the fanboy in-joke/continuity scale.

Here's the quick summary: We start out with Batman in an amusement park, fighting a child molester/serial killer with a hostage who appears so have been taken from the Doll's House book of Neil Gaiman's Sandman. Batman has a quick flashback to himself and Robin fighting Toyman with an assist from Superman. He returns home to have a quiet moment with longtime 70's love interest Silver St. Cloud. And the issue ends with Batman going after Cornelius Stirk -a telepathic cannibal from the Dark Age of Comics. And throughout all of this, there is a mysterious goat-masked hero who is helping Batman out from the shadows

Yes, that's the QUICK summary.

So what does Smith get right? A lot more than he gets wrong, for my money.

While the story does go over the place and is a bit reference heavy, Smith explains it all effortlessly and without making it feel like he's info-dumping on the reader. And the Funland reference is more of an Easter Egg for Sandman fans more than anything, as you don't have to have read Doll's House to appreciate this story.

And I must say that more than any writer in recent memory, I do love Smith's take on Alfred.

The artwork is excellent as well, with Walt Flanaghan effortlessly switching between 70's kitsch, 80's grit and 90's horror as the scene warrants.

All in all, it's not so great that you can't wait for the trade but there are much worse things to spend your money on if you're up for a good classic Batman story.



BLACKEST NIGHT: TITANS #2 - This book is pretty much what we were afraid all of the Blackest Night tie-ins would be; a pitiful excuse for the heroes of the DC Universe to get smacked around by super-powered zombies, while being written horribly out of character.

And I'd like to officially nominate Donna Troy for the title of Dumbest Heroine Ever just for this moment alone.

What's that? My dead husband wants me to hold my dead son? No problem!




GREEN LANTERN #46 - This issue is titled Uneasy Alliance. And boy does that sum it up.

* Hal Jordan, Sinestro, Carol Ferris and Indigo One form the titular Uneasy Alliance as Zamaron is captured by the Black Lanterns.

* We find out that the mysterious dead couple, whose endless love created the violet star sapphires that the Zamarons used to power their love-based Corps were a previous reincarnation of Hawkman and Hawkgirl. Way to tie it together, Johns!

* Sinestro finally confronts - and defeats - Mongul, as they fight for control over the fear-powered Sinestro Corps. Bonus Points - Sinestro does this in order to save the homeworld that has shunned him. Nice thematic resonance for the Green Lantern saga as the idea of a hero having to save the people who rejected his heroism has come up several times (Hal saving the Earth after the Parallax incident, Sodam Yat saving Daxam...)

Lots of cool moments, but for my money, the best is Carol giving voice to the thoughts that 90% of the reading audience had about the new Star Sapphire uniform.

JACK OF FABLES #38 - Not much to tell in this issue. Jack is continuing to get fatter and balder. His son, Jack Frost, has undertaken his first serious quest as a hero. Plot wise nothing much has changed. So now for something completely different - the adventures of Babe The Blue Ox!

KNIGHTS OF THE DINNER TABLE #154 - A nice jumping-on issue for those who have been curious about this book but haven't dared tried an issue yet because of the on-going storylines. The Knights and The Black Hands gear up to go to a gaming convention but Bob, Dave and Brian get locked in Brian's basement before they can get on the road.

Hilarity ensues as three gamers resort to children's board games in order to get their gaming fix, though playing Mystery Date using the cards from a nudie playing card deck in lieu of the actual dates is rather inspired as are Bob's attempts to run a Hackmaster campaign without his usual gear.

Who would have thought you could turn Clue into Ravenloft? Only a mad genius like Bob!



WARLORD #7 - Honestly, how much you will enjoy this issue will depend upon four factors.

1. How much you like Mike Grell's writing.
2. How much you like Mike Grell's artwork.
3. Your tolerance for mystery stories where you are left to puzzle things out along with the hero.
4. How much you like big pages with lots of artwork, few panels and a good deal of violence and near nudity - both male and female.

My one complaint? I wish Grell had done this as a Vertigo series, because the lengths taken to keep the toga-clad virgin from showing anything while she is running around and falling out of her ripped garment are just comically ridiculous. Give that man points for being inventive, though.



WONDER WOMAN #36 - Taking it as read that anything Gail Simone writes is brilliant and funny, what else can I say about this issue?

I like how the contrived romance with Nemesis started and promoted by the previous writing teams has finally been ended.

I like how Giganta calls a momentary truce to talk relationship conflicts with a clearly upset Diana - something she can full well relate to being a growing supervillain who is dating a shrinking superhero. (The Atom shout out for the win!)

I like the continued resistance that the female amazons (especially the former queen's honor guard) show to their new male counterparts.

But mostly? I love this moment as Diana confronts the newly-crowned Amazon King Achilles.

If you aren't reading this book, you should be.

Nearly Everything I've Read In Steptember... So Far.

Okay. So more budget problems kept me from getting my comics for a week. And then crummy weather kept me from getting them until the Sunday after I got paid. So here's what I don't feel like writing separate special reviews for.



BARACK THE BARBARIAN #2 - A bit of a let down after the first issue. Not that it's bad by any means... but the artist is not a good caricaturist and only the punny names help us identify some of the foul Pond Ditz er, I mean pundits who inhabit the labyrinth. Billo and Limbo as Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum is inspired but the helpful pundit "Rake Hell" doesn't look a blessed thing like her inspiration. No "Mad Doe The Barbarian Princess"? For shame, Larry Hama!


DOCTOR WHO #3 - Apart from wondering just how the main big bad of the story survived his last appearance on the show, this is a very effective issue of the comic you could easily see being an episode of the TV series. The short version is that The Doctor is put on trial for interfering with the space-time continuum and playing God with the universe. The fact that the laws he's violated were set down by the now-dead Time Lords and the fact that he was acting for the greater good aren't worth a tinker's cuss, especially with the prosecutor for the trial being another would-be universe conqueror who the Doctor stopped once before. Throw in a few attempts to see The Doctor assassinated before, during and after his trial and you've got a heck of a story to lead us into next issue...


RED SONJA #48 - Nothing much happens for another issue, with people still refusing to talk about their mysterious, ill-defined plans as they continue to move northward towards their vaguely defined and rather pointless goal, since we now know the weapon everybody was searching for was Red Sonja herself. And it turns out the place the bad guy was searching for was the resting place of Sonja's mostly-dead patron goddess, who wants him to save her from Sonja, who she is convinced is coming to kill her off.

I'd quit now but then I'd always be left wondering just how the hell all this randomness will come together. At least the scene with Sonja fighting werewolves, brief though it is, is decent.


WARLORD #6 - Everything gets tired up in a neat little package, though I'm a little amazed at just how quickly archeologist turned fur bikini babe Alysha has become a competent warrior. Still, I can swing with it simply because this issue is almost all action and is entirely awesome. And the ending promises the return of an old enemy as the series continues...



Tomorrow: The latest on Blackest Night. Also Six Things To Love In Secret Six. And Wonder Woman (finally!)

Fast Thoughts - The Week of 08/05/09

Because I only had two books this week, and not much to say about either one.



SECRET SIX #12 - Rocks in Socks. Great art, with a great story. And we get a lot more insight into Jeanette and just what exactly she is. (Here's a hint - it turns out she's been telling the truth the whole time and she's able to take out Wonder Woman) Previous little Ragdoll comedy, but he does steal the scene in two very good moments. All this, and Artemis kicking ass.

WARLORD #5 - A fairly standard "lead-in to the final battle" issue. Still the same great artwork and action we've come to expect, though I'd swear the brief speech about Northern Ireland was recycled from one of Grell's old Green Arrow stories.

Warlord : Series 4. Issue #1 Through #4

Confession time.

Despite being a big fan of sword and sorcery comics and Mike Grell's writing, I have yet to read a single issue of the first series of Warlord. Indeed, the first issue of this - the fourth Warlord Series - marked the first time I ever opened up any Warlord book Mike Grell had written. I have no excuse for this, save that all of the many classic series I have meant to pick up "some day" fell by the wayside when I started tracking down all the parts of my collection I had to sell off during the years spent trying to find a real job after getting my librarian degree.

(In the interest of full disclosure, I should note that I did read the first issue of Bruce Jones' attempt to revive Warlord a few years ago and the less said about that book, the better.)

I mention all this to so that I can further explain the rather unique perspective that I have upon Warlord. Because while I am broadly familiar with the character of Travis Morgan, his companions and Skartaris from the Green Arrow series, I have found out, in reading more about the series, how woefully ignorant I am regarding the exact details and unique history of the characters.

Case in point; I made mention of Travis Morgan's bard Tinder in my review of the second issue of this series. I took an immediate liking to the character, having a fondness for bards when I play Dungeons and Dragons and Tinder being a prime example of one who does not fit the tights-wearing, lute-strumming buffoon stereotype most people associate with the word "bard". I didn't know until I started doing some research into the first series that Tinder is the long lost son of Travis Morgan and his queen Tara but that both parents (and possibly Tinder himself) are ignorant of their relation to one another.

This marks the one flaw I see in the writing of this series; Grell seems to assume some passing familiarity with the characters right at the gate. Grell does not fully explain who Travis Morgan is and how he came to be Warlord of a city in a mystical land until the second issue. This is potentially fatal in these days when some readers are increasingly reluctant to give even a new TV series a shot past the first episode, even in a series which is reknowned for being mysterious.

Still, it is a credit to Grell's writing that he can create a fantasy story that is engaging to those even those readers who have no desire to dig into the mythology of an established series once exposed to it. Every issue thus far is written in such a manner that even if we do not know the full history of what has come before, we can still enjoy the action put before us now. I won't say it wasn't a little confusing getting a handle on things at first. But the third issue gave us enough action to keep things interesting and the fourth issue gave us some much needed clarification as the two seemingly independent story-lines met up.

For those who are as confused as I was, here's a quick summation of the action and players thus far.


An paleontologist named Alysha finds a perfectly preserved dinosaur body frozen in an icy cave in Tibet. She takes a sample of her discovery to Dr. Kate Archer, another paleontologist who confirms her findings. Together they go to Ned Hawkins - a daredevil playboy millionaire - who agrees to finance an expedition to Tibet. Hawkins comes along on the expedition along with Ewan McBane - a filmmaker Hawkins want to film their findings.

They manage to find the cave but are quickly attacked by the Chinese soldiers, who have set up camp near the cave. The resulting fire-fight traps the party in the cave, where they discover a glowing portal.

Cut to Skartaris and the city of Shamballah, where refugees from the nearby nation of Kiro are arriving in great numbers. Travis Morgan, Warlord of Shamballah and his wife, Queen Tara, talk with the refugees and listen to their tales of a new god and his queen, who kill from a distance with magic. Morgan examines the wound of one man who survived this "magic" attack and immediately recognizes his injuries as a bullet wound.

After briefly consulting with his daughter, the sorceress Jennifer Morgan, Travis Morgan goes off to scout ahead with his companion, the cat/woman Shakira. Also along for the ride is Tinder - a bard who serves in the Warlord's court, who is determined to get some new stories to tell.

On the road to Kiro, they stumble across a band of slavers. Warlord recognizes one of their captives as Machiste; king of Kiro and a long-time friend of Warlord. Tinder insists that they must go and warn the nearby villagers of the approaching slavers but Morgan will not abandon his friend for the sake of strangers. Tinder rides off alone to warn the peasants as Warlord and Shakira attack the slavers. They free Machiste, who tells Morgan that this new God and his Queen have kidnapped his wife - the swordswoman/archeologist Mariah.

In another part of the jungle, a wounded Tinder crosses paths with Alysha. The two save each others' lives - he by saving her from a dinosaur and she by tending his wounds after he collapses. The two trade stories, with Alysha saying that what is happening with the New God is all her fault for having brought him to Skartaris in the first place.

The three warriors agree to go after Tinder, before making further plans to fight this new God. They stumble across another group of refugees, who tell the them that Tinder saved them from the slavers, holding them off before being shot with an arrow and falling off a cliff. Not knowing that Tinder survived the fall, Morgan morns the loss of the idealistic young bard and vows to finish the battle he started.

Cut to The Shadow Lands, where we find that the New God and his Queen are - surprise! - Ned Hawkins and Kate Archer, who are using Mariah's talents as an archeologist to translate various writings in the hopes of gaining access to the near-magical technology of Atlantis. McBane is still here, filming the whole thing - now documenting Hawkins rise to be ruler of the world.

Morgan, Machiste and Shakira attack in this moment but are quickly overpowered by the magic Hawkins now wields. Shakira manages to shape-change into a cat and get away, while Morgan and Machiste are captured. Shakira finds Tinder and Alysha at nearby village and the three plot how to best rescue their friends.

With the help of McBane, who - witnessing the further madness of Hawkins and Archer - decides he can no longer just be a spectator, the three succeed in freeing Warlord and Machiste. Knowing they will need the weapons of Earth to counter Hawkins and his guns, Morgan plans to return to the surface world to get what they need as he sends Machiste to summon Tara and her armies.

A nice, rich story and one I suggest that you all read in full.

If the story can be said to be rich, then the artwork may put you diabetics out there into sugar shock. Both Joe Prado (artist on Issues 1, 2 and part of 4) and Chad Hardin (artist on Issues 3 and part of 4) do an amazing job depicting the rich vibrancy of Skartaris and the power contained within each character. Indeed, I didn't even notice that there was more than one artist working on the series until Issue 4 where both artists took separate parts of the story.

The book also features three inkers, for some reason, which may account for why some of the scenes appear to be darker than others. Still, considering that these scenes take place in the Shadow Lands or within a similarly dark setting, these differences can probably be written off as artistic differences and not stylistic clashes.

All in all, I would not only recommend this book to any fan of high fantasy, sword-and-sorcery comics - I would recommend it to anyone looking for a comic beyond the usual capes-and-tights stories. Be sure to get all four issues, though - you'll get into it a lot easier if you have all the chapters handy at once.

Do you come from a land down under?

It was supposed to be a nice, simple family vacation. Go to Nepal, to the hidden sanctuary where Connor Hawke escorted Sin to be kept in hiding away from the League of Assassins and then head back home to Star City with the family complete. Of course, The Arrow Family being what it is, things aren't nearly that simple.

Even though Ollie's ruse to fake Sin's death worked, The League has a habit of watching certain people "just in case". Particularly ones who have fought their agents before. Which would be - oh, just about everyone in the Lance/Queen household. So someone watched. Others followed. And before you could say "Change in Plans, Leggit!", our heroes (Ollie, Dinah, Mia, Connor, Sin and Lady Blackhawk for this adventure) found themselves trapped in the mountains without a ride as Aerie One was shot down and a horde of LoA agents showed up.

And that's when they noticed the cave. And the search for shelter became a much bigger quest for survival as they suddenly found themselves in a tropical jungle. Where the sun didn't set. Where the natives were primitive. And - oh yes - there were dinosaurs.

And that's when Ollie remembered a chance encounter with a man who could have been his twin, save for a few years difference in age, a few inches difference in height and the fact that Ollie's wardrobe never included a fur breech-cloth. A man who told Ollie and Dinah about having become king in such a land...

Yes. They are in Skartaris; Warlord's stomping grounds. And their first encounter with a small tribe of raptors would be just the first of many misadventures as they search for a way home.

Some will be humorous, such as Zinda deciding to "go native" after her costume gets ruined and trying to talk Dinah into going Irish McCalla with her.

(Ollie, naturally, will try to encourage this as well but Dinah will have none of it.)

Some will be deadly serious, as darn near every enemy that Travis Morgan has ever made will stumble across our team and mistake Ollie for Travis.

(Yes, Ollie and Travis will eventually met. Yes, Ollie is going to get him back for this.)

Of course Skartaris is deadly enough in and of itself. But for Mia, their side-trip may well become a death sentence - as her HIV medication supply begins to dwindle and questions begin to rise about just what kind of diseases Skataris may contain...

Fast Thoughts - The Week of 05/06/09

In the words of Joel Hodgeson, "Looks like it's a big, brawny, hairy, glistening, two-fisted, manly day!"



KULL #6 - Why, WHY must this be a mini-series and not a monthly?

Great art. Wonderful action sequences. And a wonderful storyline that expands on and continues from Howard's own classic Kull tale, The Shadow Kingdom. Not much else I can say besides that, except that you should pick up the forthcoming trade if you can't get the back issues where you are.


WARLORD #2 - Ah, now THIS is more like it.

This issue features a lot of exposition, with Travis Morgan's bard relating the story of how he became the Warlord of Shamballa. Useful for those not familiar with the previous Warlord series, but it could probably have been put in issue one.

But don't worry - it's not all bard's tales. There's more action in this issue than in most six-issue mini-series, with an entire battle vs. a gang of slavers depicted in just two pages! Because that is how Mike Grell and the Warlord roll.

Get this book while you can, kids. It's sword-and-sorcery, just the way your dad liked it.

Fast Thoughts - The Week of 4/8/09

SECRET SIX #8 - There must be something about Gail Simone stories with the title "Double Date". Such was the name of my favorite episode of Justice League Unlimited and such is the name of this book. It is easily the best issue of the series thus far, with Simone having established a perfect balance of humor, action and pathos... and that's just in the three page Tiny Titans parody which sees Lil' Ragdoll helping Batman save Gotham City, offered membership in the Green Lantern Corps and riding off into the sunset with Wonder Woman begging him to kiss her.

In all seriousness, this issue had everything.

PATHOS: Scandal runs into Liana - the lesbian stripper/escort that the rest of the team hired for her birthday a few issues ago, who is the spitting image of Scandal's deceased ex-girlfriend, the villainess Knockout. Scandal agrees to a date, despite not seeing any of Knockout's fire in Liana and despite wanting nothing more than to sink into alcoholic self-destruction because of Knockout's death. There are some geuinely touching moments here as Scandal keeps looking for something... anything... in this new woman to inspire the passion for life she has lost.

ACTION: Deadshot is forced into a date with teammate Jeanette (aka "the banshee") and is forced to promise a normal evening on the town where nobody dies. Since Liana's idea for a double date leads them to numerous encounters with a gang of skinheads with a grudge against Deadshot, this leads to numerous scenes where Floyd is challenged to fight non-lethally in a borrowed suit. And it is glorious!

HUMOR: Somewhere along the line, Scandal picked up an Apokolyptian lowlie named Insignifiucs as a personal servant, who philosophical bemoaning of his life reminds me of Zathras from Babylon 5 ("Hope is the heart of pain and only fear is eternal... On the other hand, I encourage rutting in the dirt with strangers at every available opportunity.") Between him and Ragdoll's pleading to be allowed to act as Deadshot's chaparone, it's a neck-in-neck contest as to who gets the best one-liner. ("I already have a tuxedo and some nice shoes and a bunch of pharmaceuticals and... oh and a fruitasmic rainbow of condoms! Not that I need them or anything...") Throw in Deadshot trying - honestly trying - NOT to kill people who are in desperate need of killing to keep a promise and you have comedy gold.

It's perfect. Absolutely perfect. This is not only what every issue of this comic should be; this is what every comic should be.

EDIT: Oh yeah... and Nicola Scott's art is just as awesome!


WARLORD #1 - I'm not going to lie. I was doubly disappointed. First, when I heard that Mike Grell was coming back to write and do covers for a book and some characters he was famous for working with over 20 years ago and then found out that they meant Warlord and not Green Arrow. Then I was disappointed again when I read this book.

That's not to say that this book is bad. Far from it. It just seems a lot more uneven than I am used to a Mike Grell story being.

Let me explain; this man wrote some of the best, tightest two-part action stories I've ever read without a single panel being wasted. To read a comic where there are two stories, seemingly unconnected and broken apart by a two-page flashback is like a James Robinson comic where the characters aren't having lengthy monologues about pop-culture and philosophy during their fight scenes or a Grant Morrison story where insane things aren't happening every 10 minutes. Not bad at all - just different.

The first two-thirds of the comic features a group of scientists and adventurers discovering live dinosaurs and a portal to Skartaris in Tibet, which they hurriedly enter after being trapped in a cave with said portal by the Chinese army. This cuts to a flashback of Travis Morgan crashing into Skartaris in June 1969 and a flash forward to present-day Skartaris, where Morgan fights a griffin and then receives reports of his men having fought a self-proclaimed deity, who killed from a distance using something that - judging from the wounds of the one survivor - is a gun.

It's a good start and an interesting one - certainly a lot better than Bruce Jones' attempts to reboot and restart the franchise two years ago. I'm a little anxious to see how the first part of the story is going to tie into the second, but I'm sure it will happen and will be well worth reading. Mike Grell taking his time with a story is a new experience but I'm sure it will be an adventure!

Good News, Everyone!

I don't know how I somehow missed two of these factoids until today, when the third factoid was announced. I can only conclude that it was the will of a just and loving deity who wanted to give me some good news to perk me up in the wake of what has been a pretty lousy week.

Still... Every little bit helps.


1. Judd Winick is off Green Arrow/Black Canary as of Issue #15!

2.Mike Grell returns to DC to revive Warlord!

3.Kevin Smith returns to DC to write Batman vs. Onomatopoeia!


My comments?

1. Apparently someone at DC finally noticed that the only active discussions on the Green Arrow boards on their own forums involved discussions of plot-holes in the current GA/BC storyline, complaints about how Dinah and Ollie were secondary characters in their own book with Batman doing most of the work and speculation on how much better anyone else would be at writing the book. Not to mention the series lost whatever new readers it picked up from The Wedding stunt and is back at it's end-of the-GA-solo-series numbers (Sales figures taken from http://www.cbgxtra.com/Default.aspx?tabid=695 )

1. 52,128
2. 42,811
3. 40,297
4. 35,011
5. 36,639
6. 32,611
7. 32,027
8. 30,855
9. 30,319

And on a side tangent... why is it still the Green Arrow boards, huh? It's been a year since Green Arrow/Black Canary put out issue #1 folks. Let's snap to it, huh?

Obviously, I'm happy. I'll admit to being somewhat wary that the new writer is new to DC Comics. Still, he did write one of the best episodes of the Justice League cartoon and his Helen Killer book is much greatness. He's also making a living doing television writing which is just as difficult to find steady professional work in as comics. And he did say all the right things in the above interview - i.e. focus on Ollie and Dinah in their city with their family, no more globe-trotting with Batman.

2. Well, he's not writing Green Arrow... but he's in the perfect position to do a guest spot. Writing or artwork would be cool.

And of course the return of Warlord is a good thing, as well. And that's even ignoring the chance of a revival of the Ollie Queen/Travis Morgan running-gag. Much as I want to see Ollie get back to basics at home, I do love the idea of the Arrow Family getting stranded in Skartaris.

3. Give DC credit. This time they made sure all the scripts were done before they even announced the book. Seriously, I love Smith's writing but the man can't keep a monthly deadline schedule AND keep being one of the best director/producer/writers of his generation.